Patanjali bullish on int’l markets, to launch ‘swadeshi’ jeans

Nagpur, Sep 11 (PTI)Yoga guru Ramdev-owned Patanjaligroup is all set to explore international markets with itsFMCG products and may also enter Pakistan and Afghanistanin future. "We have already set up our units in Nepal andBangladesh and our products have reached the Middle East andbecame popular in some of the countries, including SaudiArabia," Baba Ramdev told reporters here. "We should be concentrating in poor countries as theprofits from those countries will be utilised for developmentwork there itself. "The entry to Pakistan and Afghanistan will mostlydepend on the prevailing political situation, and if thesituation is politically conducive, units will be set upthere," he said. He said their company products are reaching right upto Canada. Patanjali has already entered Azerbaijan which has 90per cent Muslim population, he said claiming that a topindustrialist there has shown interest in his products. Ramdev said Patanjali will also venture into garmentsarea and a ‘swadeshi jeans’ will be launched by end of theyear or early next year. There is a great demand from youths, and thereforePatanjali has decided to launch the Indianised jeans tocompete with foreign brands, he said. The company’s refined edible oil will also be launchedthis year, he added. On expansion, Ramdev said Patanjali will be setting upits biggest unit on a 40-lakh sqft at Mihan in Nagpur, whichwill be bigger than its first unit at Haridwar and biggest inthe country. The total investment in the city will be to the tuneof Rs 1,000 crore with a potential of providing employmentopportunities to 10,000 to 15,000 youths from Maharashtra. An export unit in the adjoining SEZ will be set up asNagpur provides better connectivity, he said. Patanjali is in the process of setting up big unitsin Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh,Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Karnataka, besidesestablishing subsidiary units in a number of places, as partof supply chain. "Our target is Rs 50 lakh crore in the FMCG segment,"Ramdev said. He added Patanjali is committed to produce qualityproducts and has set up research and development units whereabout 200 scientists work, which has forced multinationalcompanies to come out with their R&D plans. PTI JOE GKJMJMF